Challenging the Human Ancestor, the Ancestors Manifest
The inner world of the Eternal Rankings!
Yuan Zhexian had swept through the predecessors ranked ahead of him on the Eternal Rankings, until he defeated the supreme predecessor ranked eleventh. That was a supreme expert who had attained the Dao in the Mythical Era.
An Innate Holy Spirit. The Innate Holy Spirit had been born at the end of the Heaven-Opening Era, with the cultivation of a Saint from the moment of its birth. But in that era, when even Immortals existed, Great Emperors walked everywhere, and Saints and Quasi-Emperors were worth less than dogs, it was far too weak.
Thus, after its birth, it had remained in the place where it was born, not daring to reveal itself to the world. Only after the Heaven-Opening Tribulation, when the Heaven-Opening Era ended and the Mythical Era began, did it gradually begin to show its brilliance. Its talent and aptitude were comparable to those of the top ten among the three thousand physiques.
Even so, it could not withstand Yuan Zhexian's monstrously powerful attacks. In the end, Yuan Zhexian pushed it down in the rankings.
After defeating the Innate Holy Spirit, he had intended to wait where he was for the guiding light to send him to the inner world of the tenth-ranked expert. At that moment, the voice from the Eternal Rankings rang out again.
"Yuan Zhexian of the forbidden Yuan Clan, because your physique is special, your talent and aptitude defy the heavens, and your combat power is unmatched, you have swept through the first ninety ranks of the Eternal Rankings.
"Now, you may choose any one of the top ten on the rankings to challenge. After defeating them, you may continue challenging those above them.
"Or you may continue by challenging the tenth-ranked expert first, or... I will first introduce the ten supreme experts at the top of the Eternal Rankings. You may decide afterward."
"Tenth place: Great Emperor Ziwei, a human who attained the Dao in the Immortal Ancient Era. The creator of the Zhou Heaven Star Great Array, an array capable of slaying Immortals. Born with the talent of an emperor, he reached the peak of the Mythical Emperor realm.
"Ninth place: Great Emperor Shitian, Di Shitian, an innate human. He attained the Dao in the Heaven-Opening Era. He possessed the Azure Heaven Tyrant Physique, one of the three thousand physiques, and cultivated the Eight-Nine Mysterious Art as his primary technique. His body was unrivaled, and his cultivation reached the peak of the Mythical Emperor realm.
"Eighth place: Azure Emperor, an innate spirit of the Demon Race. He attained the Dao in the early Mythical Era. He possessed a half-step Chaos Physique, cultivated the Chaos Azure Lotus Art as his primary technique, and reached the peak of the Mythical Emperor realm.
"Seventh place: Great Emperor Tianji, a human who attained the Dao in the Ancient Era. Originally a mere mortal physique, he later encountered the art of divination. He created his own path of heavenly secrets and repeatedly pierced their mysteries. The art of heavenly secrets truly defied the heavens, and the Heavenly Dao sent down divine punishment, causing his death. His cultivation reached the Quasi-Immortal realm.
"Sixth place: the Demon Ancestor. A being born in the Heaven-Opening Era, he attained the Dao in that same era. He was the first Great Emperor of the Demon Race and the ancestor of all demons. He was later slain by the Human Ancestor. His cultivation reached the Quasi-Immortal realm.
"Fifth place: the Heavenly Emperor of the ancient Heavenly Court, a human who attained the Dao in the Archaic Era. He chanced upon a complete immortal scripture in his youth and was born with an Innate Solar Physique. He rose in the Archaic Era, invincible beneath the heavens, and swept all before him for several epochs. He established the Heavenly Court to protect the human race and became its Heavenly Emperor. His cultivation reached the Quasi-Immortal realm.
"Fourth place: Samsara Great Emperor, a human who attained the Dao in the Mythical Era. He created the Six Paths of Samsara Scripture and the Six Paths of Samsara Fist and possessed an innate Samsara Physique. His offensive power was unmatched. He protected the human race and suppressed the Ten Lands for several epochs. His cultivation reached the Quasi-Immortal realm.
"Third place: Heavenly Emperor Ye, a human who attained the Dao near the end of the Heaven-Opening Era. He protected the human race for dozens of epochs, lived nine lives in defiance of fate, and suppressed every enemy in the world. His physique was the Innate Saintly Physique Dao Embryo. His cultivation was above the Immortal realm.
"Second place: Chaos Great Emperor, a human who attained the Dao in the middle of the Heaven-Opening Era. He was the first human to possess a Chaos Physique and could see the origin of the Dao from birth. He could wield Chaos Qi against his enemies, annihilate all attacks, and bring forth countless anomalies. After his emergence, his combat power was peerless, and he was invincible among those of the same realm. He slaughtered until no one in the world at the time dared call themselves supreme. His cultivation was above the Immortal realm.
"First place: the Human Ancestor, an innate human who attained the Dao in the Heaven-Opening Era. He was the first Great Emperor of the human race and the first to possess an Innate Saintly Physique Dao Embryo.
"At the beginning of the Heaven-Opening Era, the innate demons and innate vicious beasts were immensely powerful and ran rampant throughout the world, while the innate humans were still comparatively weak. The demons and vicious beasts fed on humans, absorbing their essence blood to increase their own cultivation.
"Later, the Human Ancestor emerged in defiance of the heavens and advanced by leaps and bounds. To ensure the human race could continue to reproduce, he wandered the border between life and death countless times.
"Relying on the power of his mighty Innate Saintly Physique Dao Embryo, his indomitable will, and the power of all living beings, he overcame the supreme experts of the Demon Race and the vicious beasts and became an emperor in defiance of the heavens.
"He protected the human race for countless epochs and later created countless supreme cultivation techniques for humanity. Only after the human race gradually grew stronger and its experts continued to emerge did he disappear. Cultivation: ?????."
Yuan Zhexian stood in the air, silently watching the information on the ten supreme experts appear one after another. His mind raced as he considered whom to challenge.
When he saw Chaos Great Emperor, Chaos Qi involuntarily emerged from his body, and he stared fixedly at the information about Chaos Great Emperor.
When the introduction to Chaos Great Emperor ended, he was just about to say he would challenge him. After all, Chaos Great Emperor had been the first Chaos Physique in heaven and earth. If he could fight him, Yuan Zhexian figured he would gain a profound understanding of his own Chaos Physique.
Perhaps he could even discover more ways to fight with the Chaos Physique, as well as secret techniques.
Then the voice introduced the Human Ancestor, and Yuan Zhexian stopped.
When he had seen the Human Ancestor's entire introduction, he involuntarily felt respect for him. At a time when the human race was comparatively weak, the Human Ancestor had slain supreme experts of the Demon Race and vicious beasts, ultimately becoming an emperor in defiance of the heavens.
Was that not because he had constantly surpassed himself? Moreover, he ranked one place higher than Chaos Great Emperor.
Did that mean the Human Ancestor was even stronger than Chaos Great Emperor? Respect was one thing, but Yuan Zhexian still had the conviction that he himself was invincible.
Whether it was the Human Ancestor or Chaos Great Emperor, Yuan Zhexian firmly believed he could defeat them both.
Yuan Zhexian then spoke calmly to the voice.
"I've decided. I want to challenge the Human Ancestor!"
The voice replied in surprise, "You are the first heaven-defying person to sweep through the first ninety ranks. From ancient times to the present, no one like you has appeared who could keep challenging their way into the top ten.
"And the Human Ancestor was a figure without equal in the world. His combat power is unknown; even someone like Chaos Great Emperor once lost to him. Are you certain?"
"Among the strong, there is always someone stronger; beyond one mountain, another rises higher. Only by challenging the strongest can I keep surpassing myself. So what if he's the Human Ancestor? He made a tremendous contribution to the survival of the human race and is worthy of respect.
"But I also want to know how strong the Human Ancestor, the one ranked first on the Eternal Rankings, is. I am invincible. I am without equal throughout the ages."
When Yuan Zhexian finished, the voice fell silent. Then the sound of the Great Dao suddenly rang out across the sky, and countless golden lotuses of merit drifted down.
A man dressed in golden imperial robes appeared. He looked to be in his forties or fifties, and his face was incomparably majestic. He looked down upon the world like the creator of all living things, carrying the bearing of a sovereign ruling over all under heaven. No one dared look directly at him.
He descended from the sky step by step, and with each step, a golden lotus formed beneath his feet.
He came to a stop not far in front of Yuan Zhexian. A faint smile appeared on his exceedingly majestic face as he looked at Yuan Zhexian and said, "A fine junior. That you dare challenge me shows that your talent and aptitude defy the heavens even more than those of a forbidden-level monstrous genius. You are also supremely confident."
"Tell me your name, little fellow!"
"I am Yuan Zhexian of the Yuan Clan!"
"Hmm? Someone from the Yuan Clan. After countless years, I never expected the one to challenge me would be from the Yuan Clan."
"Oh... Senior, do you know someone from my Yuan Clan?"
The Human Ancestor laughed and said, "Haha, I cannot say, I cannot say..."
At that moment, in several unknown spaces, some were wreathed in immortal mist, some had purple qi surging into the heavens, some were filled with Chaos Qi, and in others the laws of Samsara were profound and mysterious...
Seven figures then opened their eyes at the same time, golden light shooting from them as they saw through space and time. With a movement of their spiritual power, all seven figures appeared in the River of Time at once.
The River of Time! It was an exceedingly mysterious place. The River of Time was more than a river; it symbolized the flow and changes of time. Through this river, people could glimpse scenes of the future and look back upon events of the past.
The seven figures arrived at the River of Time one after another. Chaos Great Emperor was the first to speak. "You all must have sensed it. The soul imprints we left on the Eternal Rankings back then have flickered. That means a heaven-defying monstrous genius whose talent and aptitude rival ours has appeared in this world. Moreover, I sensed the Human Ancestor's presence. Could it be that this heaven-defying monstrous genius intends to challenge the Human Ancestor?"
Heavenly Emperor Ye then said with a smile, "From ancient times to the present, no one has ever successfully challenged the Human Ancestor." As he spoke, he glanced at Chaos Great Emperor beside him.
"But for such a person to dare issue the challenge shows that he has extreme confidence in his own conviction of invincibility. We would naturally want to come and see such a person."
Samsara Great Emperor then spoke. "In any case, the battle between such a heaven-defying person and the Human Ancestor can certainly be described as shaking the past and dazzling the present. Let us wait and see."